All posts tagged ‘islands of adventure’

Throughout July we visited six of the biggest theme parks in Orlando, Florida and considered the top ten geeky attractions in each. We then asked you to vote for the park you considered the geekiest. After a week of voting we can now announce that the winner is…

EPCOT

EPCOT took just over 50% of the total votes to win by a large margin with Universal’s Islands of Adventure coming in second. Interestingly, Disney’s Hollywood Studios only managed fourth place, despite being home to Star Wars, Indiana JonesandThe Muppets. The results give us a great idea of what you, our readers, really consider geeky and it would seem that the “hard” geek topics like space travel, technology, engineering and communications that are showcased in EPCOT win out over the brand-based geekdom found at Hollywood Studios and Islands of Adventure. It’s something we’ll be keeping in mind on the site, but if you find yourself with a free day in Orlando any time, it seems EPCOT is the place to go.

Throughout July we visited six of the biggest theme parks in Orlando, Florida and considered the top ten geeky attractions in each. Now it’s time to vote for the park you consider the geekiest of them all. Before you vote, here’s a recap of each of them:

1. Disney’s Animal KingdomHome to dinosaurs, the Yeti and a host of real life animals, with a ton of learning opportunities thrown in to boot. Animal Kingdom is a biology or palaeontology geek’s dream.

2. EPCOTEPCOT has possibly the geekiest creation story of all parks; but on top of that the whole park is an educational wonderland. Blast off to Mars, learn about energy and communications, and tour the globe at World Showcase.

3. Disney’s Hollywood StudiosJourney into the Twilight Zone, watch Indiana Jones performing stunt live on stage and fly around the galaxy far, far away. Younglings can even pick a fight with Darth Vader if they’re feeling brave.

4. Universal’s Islands of AdventureThere’s an entire Island devoted to Marvel comic characters, another where you can finally walk through the giant gates of Jurassic Park, and yet another that’s home to Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. Surely this park has to be in with a Phelpsian chance at winning the vote?

5. The Magic KingdomPirates, Buzz Lightyear, the chance to fly around space on a rocket roller coaster, and a genuine railroad? They may not be the biggest geek brands but these are the geeky activities we all grew up with.

6. Universal StudiosE.T, Men in Black and the Terminator. If you like your geek served with a side of retro, then maybe this is the park for you!

Once you’ve decided on your choice, cast your vote below. Voting will stay open until Friday August 10 with the result being posted the following week. May the geekiest park win!

The ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is inside Hogwarts Castle at Universal’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Photo by Alisson Clark.

The groundbreaking ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey — centerpiece of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal’s Islands of Adventure — won “best new attraction” honors from Theme Park Insider when it debuted last year. The ride also stands among the site’s top themed rides based on reader reviews, with a 10 out of 10 rating. If you read those reviews, you’ll hear plenty of people say it’s the best ride they’ve ever experienced.

Here are a few reasons why I think it’s a top contender for best ride in the country, at least for Potter fans:

1) I’m not a coaster fan, but Forbidden Journey delivers swooping, heart-pounding thrills that even a loop-de-loop-aphobic like me can enjoy. With its combination of immersive simulation sequences and actual motion — we’re talking feet in the air, hair dangling motion — it brings realism that a straight-up simulator ride could never match. The fact that it’s not a coaster, however, makes it enjoyable for younger kids as well as those of us who don’t like to be tossed upside down at speeds or hurled through bone-juddering turns.

2) Potter fans are WWoHP’s biggest market, but they could also have been its greatest detractors had their been a whiff of cheesiness about the attraction. Instead, the characters (human and otherwise) and scenes are rendered with loving attention to detail. The ride pleases fans of the Harry Potter books and movies, but its flying sequences will thrill even those with no fondness for the Boy Who Lived.

3) As a Potter fan, I have shamelessly geeked out on my son’s HP video games after he went to bed, just for the pleasure of strolling around Hogwarts Castle and its grounds with Ron and Hermione. Visiting the entire WWoHP is a real-life version of this thrill, but nowhere do you feel more like you’ve stepped into Rowling’s amazing head movie than in Hogwarts Castle while in line for the ride. It’s transporting and, yes, truly magical. Portraits of the Fat Lady and the Hogwarts founders address you as you file through the queue. Dumbledore appears in his office, and Harry, Ron and Hermione pop out from beneath the invisibility cloak in the Defense against the Dark Arts classroom in stunningly realistic fashion. My husband has worked in the theming industry, at a company that builds and designs such attractions, and even he was gobsmacked by the level of realism we saw.

4) Wait times for Forbidden Journey can top 90 minutes, (on some occasions, however, I have walked on with a minimal wait) but you’ll be enthralled with what surrounds you while in line at Hogwarts Castle. On my first visit, I stayed at a resort on the Universal property, which gives you an hour to visit the park before it opens to regular guests (highly recommended). Because we were there before the park opened, we could walk right on the ride, but instead, we opted to take our time and enjoy the surroundings and entertainments in the castle’s line area. When you want to stand in line LONGER to appreciate everything around you, you know it’s a successful attraction.

5) Before riding Harry Potter, I considered Universal’s Spiderman ride the epitome of cool. I still love its zooming, skyscraper-swinging thrills, but Forbidden Journey cast it in a new light. While Spidey is still fun and original, the visual dazzle just can’t compare to the giant spiders, looming Dementors, Whomping Willow and vertiginous flights through Hogwarts that Forbidden Journey delivers.

If you’ve been on Forbidden Journey, does it top your list of best theme park rides?

If you haven’t, what would it have to offer in order to be your No. 1?

To help you make the most of your trip, or to help you decide if your kids are ready for the attraction, GeekMom is taking your WWoHP questions in our forum. Post any questions you have about the park, the Harry Potter rides, shops and restaurants, the resort hotels, the geeky goodness that is WWoHP, and I’ll do my best to answer as many as I can. If I can’t answer from personal experience, I’ll endeavor to be your Muggle ombudsman to the peeps at Universal to find out the info you need.